Illusion ➵ Zach Mitchell

09 ➵ pterodactyl

ILLUSION

[chapter nine]

PRESENT

A whirlwind of dust formed as the 1993 Ford Explorer carried us along the dirt trail to what was hopefully the center of the park. This places was confusing enough as it is and with that thing out there, I didn't know what to expect as we seemed to go deeper and deeper into the forest. Luckily, the green canopy opened, revealing an open field.

I scrunched up my face, scanning the check point the path had lead us to; rusted gates blocked our way to the large wall the confined the dinosaurs in the valley. I expected Zach to slow down so that we could get out to figure out a way to open the gate, but he had a different idea. He stepped on the pedal, making us go faster.

"Zach," I asked, worried. I griped the side out the truck, praying that I wouldn't fall out upon impact.

"I got this," he jokingly reassured me. We were picking up speed and I felt Gray hold on to my arm. I looked down at him and he shut his eyes, bracing himself. Zach's shoulder blades hunched and he let out a soft grunt as the truck crashed into the gate.

I let out a shout before turning it into a nervous, shaky laugh. My knuckles lost the pink flush because of how hard to was holding out to the truck's door. I could not believe that worked. I found myself smiling at the adrenaline rush but the fun was short lived.

The wind nosily rushed through my ears making hearing hard, but not impossible. I could hear the flapping of wings echoing faintly behind us. At first I bushed it off, it was probably a large bird. I didn't do much research on the exotic animals of the island. The beating soon became too loud to be just an ordinary bird.

I twisted around in the seat, holding on to the dashboard so I wouldn't fall out of the car, when I saw a large flock of birds flying towards us. I narrowed my eyes. Where did these birds come from? I stared at them long enough to notice their abnormal size. Raking my brain, I remembered that the aviary, which held all of the parks pterodactyls, was close by. Somehow they must've gotten out. I scrunched my eyes, trying to get a better look.

"Watch out," Gray screamed. Zach gripped the steering wheel hard, jerking it to the side, causing the car to spin to a stop. My hand slipped from my hold on the car, and my head hit the dash. I felt my back hit the ground, shooting pain up my neck. My nails dug into the ground, trying to secure myself. I turned on my side, facing forward as the pain throbbed from my forehead. I sucked in a breath, coming face to beak with a pterodactyl. Cautiously rising to my feet, I staggered backwards, my feet scuffling against the dirt.

I tore my gaze away from the pterodactyl. We were only a few feet away from the edge of the woods. Close enough that I could see the wall of the enclosure. I heard someone coming up behind me. Their hands grabbed hold of my arms, pulling me up off of the ground. Zach's dark hair line my peripheral vision. He breathed in near my ear and I could feel his heart beating as fast as mine was.